==== ISSUE 121 ==== CONSUMABLE ======== [September 15, 1997] Editor: Bob Gajarsky Internet: gaj@westnet.com Sr. Correspondents: Tim Kennedy, Reto Koradi, David Landgren, Sean Eric McGill, Tim Mohr, Al Muzer, Joe Silva Correspondents: Daniel Aloi, Tracey Bleile, Lee Graham Bridges, Scott Byron, Patrick Carmosino, Janet Herman, Bill Holmes, Eric Hsu, Tim Hulsizer, Stephen Lin, Scott Miller, Linda Scott, Scott Slonaker, Simon Speichert, Jon Steltenpohl, Simon West, Lang Whitaker Technical Staff: Chris Candreva, Dave Pirmann Also Contributing: Tym Altman, Nancy Price, Ron Singer Address all comments, subscriptions, etc. to gaj@westnet.com ================================================================== All articles in Consumable remain (C) copyright their author(s). Permission for re-publication in any form must be obtained from the editor. ================================================================== .------------. | Contents | `------------' INTERVIEW: Radiohead (Part 2) - Nancy Price REVIEW: Radiohead, _OK Computer_ - Scott Byron ADVANCE REVIEW: Dream Theater, _Falling Into Infinity_ - Dan Birchall CONCERT REVIEW: Power Station - Bob Gajarsky INTERVIEW: Fish (Part 1) - Tym Altman and Ron Singer REVIEW: Ralley, _Ralley_ - Tim Mohr REVIEW: Soundtrack, _Kiss Me Guido_ - Sean Eric McGill REVIEW: Jennifer Goree, _Jennifer Goree_ - Jon Steltenpohl CONCERT REVIEW: The Montgomery Cliffs - Bill Holmes REVIEW: Life of Agony, _Soul Searching Sun_ - Sean Eric McGill SHORT TAKES: Hanuman Care Kit, Jaymz Bee And Royal Jelly Orchestra, Abe Lincoln Story - Bob Gajarsky REVIEW: The Rudess Morgenstein Project, _The Rudess Morgenstein Project_ - Linda Scott REVIEW: Jenifer Smith, _Code Mesa_ - Jon Steltenpohl NEWS: Squirrel Nut Zippers TOUR DATES: Bailter Space / Sunday Puncher, David Bowie, Daft Punk / Aphex Twin, Danielson/Soul Junk, Chris Duarte, Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Foo Fighters , Greg Garing, Buddy Guy, (hed) p.e., Irving Plaza, Life of Agony, Pantera / Coal Chamber / Machine Head, Samples, Shootyz Groove / Tree, Tsunami Back Issues of Consumable --- INTERVIEW: Radiohead (Part 2) - Nancy Price (The first part of this interview appeared in the September 1 issue - #120 - of Consumable Online). Radiohead are one of a handful of bands who clearly seem to be plugged into the nineties, and even own their namesake domains (radiohead.com and, for Europe, radiohead.co.uk). The website itself is certainly unique with its spartan content. "Stanley Donwood does the website and does the artwork with Thom," explains O'Brien. 'We just didn't want to do one of those websites that is basically like `here's a picture of the band, here's the band on the set of their latest video, you can buy the video, you can buy the new single out now.' We wanted something that provoked a bit more of a reaction - you either love it or hate it. People think it's interesting... and then other people say "why can't I get the chords to "Creep?" ' O'Brien was unaware that the website seems to be having a bit of trouble, and, for the past couple months has included the message, "This site, embarrassingly listed as the official Radiohead site, has been left in a state of confusion by Stanley Donwood, who has vanished." Although the band may not visit their virtual home too often, they are, at least, computer literate. "Oh, completely - yeah. Totally. Colin and Thom have got Powerbooks out on the road, Jonny's going to buy a Powerbook." So do they do much websurfing? "Yeah," O'Brien replies, "I find it so boring, though. I personally feel the best thing about the internet is the text. The graphics - it takes so bloody long to download anything. The text is the stuff that interests me." (His insistence upon his interest only in the text is intriguing, as I made no effort to steer the conversation in that direction. A couple days later, however, I learn from a writer from Rolling Stone Online that she initially had an interview scheduled with O'Brien to discuss sex-related websites... but the interview was canceled without explanation.) O'Brien does, however, attest to the power of the web. "When we're in the studio - the day after we tracked the songs, there was a website saying the songs we were recording. We have no idea - *no idea* - how they got the names of the songs. Okay, some of them we played live, some of them we haven't. There's no way. Stuff that had been written the night before, been tracked. Really weird. I just have got a feeling that one of the others in the band is going onto the computer about three in the morning and being a mole... and that's cool, that's fine." There's certainly a major demand for news about the band in the online world. Radiohead's internet devotees span the globe - in fact, the UBL (Ultimate Band List) mentions more than seventy sites dedicated to the band, and their high-volume mailing list has over four hundred members... well, four hundred, and, on occasion, another five. O'Brien smiles, "When we were in the studio, we'd occasionally go in on that. They wouldn't believe who we were. They told us to get off." For real-time online interaction, fans will pretty much have to wait for one of the numerous online chats featuring the band, or, as the case may be, the band minus O'Brien: "I always avoid [chats]. I've done it once. I'm not that interested at all. You've always got some person regulating it, and I don't want to have just the `good' questions. I want to see what else is being said, and it's really frustrating to have that `we can't show the band *that* question.' If someone says `you guys, you suck, I hate your album' I want to retort, I want to respond to that." Personally, his favorite aspects of Internet connectivity vary. On the web, he admits to liking "things like typing in a word and seeing where it gets you. I'm also a big soccer fan - Manchester United - so I check out the MU sites, and there are a lot." And though he has a Mac at home, "on the road, I can't get any of the world wide web. I do e-mail with a palmtop - you can get text only." The written word - that text - again is apparently where his passion lies. "I love e-mail, e-mail is brilliant. It changes the way we talk. Suddenly, you're getting letters on the road. Contact, rather than you sending and it being one way the whole time." Contact with home and the outside world in general would be vital for anyone on the road, holed up with other band members and crew for sometimes months on end. Still, even when they're back home, it sounds like they just can't be apart for too long. "We all live in Oxford. If we're back for months, we see other friends and chill out, and then by the second week, we're phoning one another up, saying `what are you doing?'" That honest, undiluted friendship is the foundation upon which Radiohead have built their remarkable career. It is also what motivates them to move forward. Of the future, O'Brien says he sees the band's goal as, "fairly simply, to continue making good and better records. And remain friends, really. Remain friends and remain human beings." A moment's pause, then he clarifies, "If for one moment I believed that me and the band as a whole had become rock and roll casualties who don't get on, who become twisted... you see a lot of these old rock and rollers - unwilling to take the rough, having had the smooth... then I wouldn't carry on. I'm not interested in compromising our characters or becoming rock and roll assholes - not interested in that at all." --- REVIEW: Radiohead, _OK Computer_ (Capitol) - Scott Byron Radiohead's third album, _OK Computer_, is a rarity in recent history - a grand, well-thought-out, sonically adventurous *album*. It's hard to come up with a contemporary comparison for this: an album that's a full-fledged experience, where the *sounds* are as important as the words. Each of the tracks here has been carefully constructed, with layers of guitars, multiple rhythms, and all sorts of other things on top and inside. And then the tracks themselves have been placed together into a coherent whole. The way it all falls together has an almost Pink Floyd-ish quality. Which is not to say that Radiohead now sounds like Pink Floyd. They don't. But love 'em or hate 'em, Pink Floyd set the standard for grand concept albums. And _OK Computer_ is grand in that same way, and somewhat thematic, loosely examining man's interaction with technology. Thankfully, Radiohead stops short of the sometimes-pretentious narrative style that sometimes dragged down Floyd's work. [Though I must say that the band's announced intention to make videos for every song on this album may push them over the edge into pretension. Still, the animated video for "Paranoid Android" is pretty great. Whatever.] To fully experience this fine work, I encourage you to listen to _OK Computer_ straight through, perhaps through headphones. And play it loud. Focus on the details. The way Thom Yorke's vocals float above "Lucky" but nestle into the center of "Let Down" and "Subterranean Homesick Alien." How the latter's lush textures swirl and carry the listener, in stark contrast to the bold contrasts in the sections of the "Paranoid Android" suite. Pay close attention to how the sound effects, distant drums and vocal treatments give "Climbing Up The Walls" an eerie, otherworldly quality which morphs into majestic crescendos. Revel in the truly amazing guitarwork throughout. Or just ignore all of that, turn up the volume, turn out the lights, and experience it. --- ADVANCE REVIEW: Dream Theater, _Falling Into Infinity_ (Elektra) - Dan Birchall It's a crazy year in metal. Metallica are accused of selling out - again. Ditto for Queensryche, whose label closed in mid-tour - ouch! Soundgarden called it quits, and Fates Warning thumbed their noses at commercialism, releasing a single 53-minute song. Amid all this, Dream Theater worked on _Falling Into Infinity,_ the first full album after their "A Change of Seasons" EP, which was released only after Internet fans buried the label in e-mail requests. The on-line rumor mills have been running full tilt. How would Kevin Shirley work out as producer? How was keyboardist Derek Sherinian fitting in? Drummer Mike Portnoy's periodic updates on the band's website at http://www.rsabbs.com/dt helped calm the frenzy - a bit. To get to the bottom of this, I spoke with guitarist John Petrucci, bassist John Myung, and Portnoy this August, and gave the CD several listens. Rich harmony, complex rhythms and arrangements, emotional vocals - it's definitely progmetal, and obviously Dream Theater. Myung describes it as 'a classic Dream Theater record.' Portnoy says, "It's the next step for us, but it's a logical step, where it sounds like us," and Petrucci affirms that it's less of a leap than Queensryche and Metallica made. That's not to say that there haven't been changes. As the band members put it, "A lot of our fans love the _Images and Words_ album, and they love the _Awake_ album, but they have to remember that the music for _Images and Words,_ were written more than ten years ago. We were in our early twenties; it was the late 80's when we wrote that material. People want to hear that stuff again. Will it be like _Images and Words?_ No, because we're ten years older; we're adults now. The music around us is different now, our musical inspirations are different. So it's not going to be anything like either of them. But because we're the same people inside, of course it's going to be us. No matter what we do, it's going to be us. It's just going to be the next step, a further extension. We're the same people, we're the same writers; we have the same interests, but you change, so the music is inevitably going to change as well." Many small surprises are on this album. The 8-minute lead track "New Millenium" has an eastern, "new-age" feel to it, with some unusual progressions and a keyboard intro a la Alan Parsons. Track two, "You Not Me," circulated throughout the Internet, but band members say that "the album is very diverse. It would be impossible to judge by one song," and they're right - it's not representative. Co-authored by Desmond Child, it's short and accessible, with a simple beat, catchy chorus, and fairly typical pop-metal vocals. Further along, the 12-minute "Lines in the Sand" features soulful backing vocals by Doug Pinnick of King's X. It seems appropriate that the song is full of spiritual imagery. "Lines in the Sand" is not the only "classic" Dream Theater song here. The disturbing child-abuse tale "Peruvian Skies" shifts from a ballad to metal reminiscent of Mercyful Fate. "Burning My Soul" is an excellent first single, with vocalist James LaBrie spitting out the bitter lyrics. A classic Dream Theater instrumental, "Hell's Kitchen" seems short at just over four minutes - but there are smooth segues at both ends of it! In "Just Let Me Breathe," a hard-rocking free thought treatise, the band vent against the evils of drugs, MTV, record labels, and combinations thereof. They mince no words, stating that "A daily dose of eMpTyV will flush your brain right down the drain." Look for a twisted reference to "Take the Time" in the lyrics of this one as well. And of course, Myung's three-part, 13-minute "Trial of Tears" is an epic - this album's "Metropolis Part I." The big surprises are the three remaining songs, "Hollow Years," "Take Away My Pain," and "Anna Lee." All three are soft songs, and simpler than the others on the album. More importantly, their lyrics are universal - Dream Theater fans will relate to these songs, but so will anyone else! One expects to see them on rock charts, but with a quick remix, at most, they'd be equally well-suited for almost any genre. It speaks well of the band that they've reached a level of maturity and skill where they can write songs with this kind of universal message, while maintaining their integrity and style. Dream Theater fans have little to worry about - there are some surprises, but the band remains true to the signature sound of their last few releases. At 78 minutes, the album is so long, and the length of songs so varied, that the order had to be rearranged for the cassette version! The technical mastery fans expect from the band is present in spades, and the results should be appealing. "Burning My Soul" will debut on radio September 15th, so keep your ears - and your mind - open! What's next for the band? By the time you read this, they may already be in South America, where they expect to play a few shows before the September 23 release. As soon as the album hits stores, they plan to be on the road in the USA. It'll be a different experience, as three members of the band became fathers while working on this album, but they're looking forward to it - and they say the kids might go along in a few years! --- CONCERT REVIEW: Power Station - Bob Gajarsky The Power Station have lost two members in the past two years. The first, John Taylor, departed during the recording of _Living In Fear_ to pursue his solo career. After calling in another ex-Chic member, Bernard Edwards, to double on bass guitar as well as with production duties, _Living In Fear_ was completed. However, Edwards contracted a dangerous form of influenza and died in his sleep in Tokyo in April, 1996. The group decided to continue on in his absence as a trio. At a recent showcase at New York City's Fashion Cafe, the Power Station flexed their collective muscle with six additional performers. While their debut album on Guardian features members of the Tower of Power horn section, the Big Apple show included four members of the Uptown Horns, along with two additional guitar players. Lead singer Robert Palmer was decked out in his trademark brown suit, and waited 'backstage' before the show. The former Duran Duran member Andy Taylor was affable to his fans, many of whom were clutching their _Rio_ albums, now emblazoned with the guitarist's John Hancock. And the other former member of Chic, Tony Thompson appeared powerful while testing out the drum kit. The band opened with the T. Rex classic, "Get It On", which was trying for Palmer; he subtly instructed the soundman to raise his vocals to rise above the guitars, but unfortunately, throughout the entire performance, those vocals weren't at the proper level. They proceeded to a trio of songs from the new disc; the first single, "She Can Rock It", which comes off as a slower version of their cover of "Get It On"; "Power Trippin'", seen here as a faster version of "Murderess", and the title cut "Living In Fear". This latter song showcased the path towards which the Power Station have moved; Thompson's pounding on the skins and cymbals with Taylor's searing guitars would have fit in perfectly with mid 1980s Def Leppard, making an awkward place for Palmer's poorly mixed vocals. So while the Power Station may have returned back to the music scene, some of the funk which made their eponymous debut so special ten years back has been replaced with a driving force nearly the equal of arena rock. This would prove to be the only new tracks the group would perform; the top 10 hit "Some Like It Hot" and Palmer's own #1 hit "Addicted To Love" brought the six song set to a rousing conclusion. The audience, consisting almost entirely of twenty and thirty somethings, were clearly pleased that the song selection included a couple of the 'classic' cuts. A funny, but unfortunate, incident was recounted by Palmer to preclude "She Can Rock It". Apparently, the band was booked to perform on the Regis & Kathy Lee show, but objections were raised to the line 'kisses like cocaine'. Palmer agreed to modify the drug to 'champagne', but the puritanical show then complained about the line 'It's a sorry looking doughnut if it doesn't have a hole', and the booking was cancelled. Makes you wonder how many other artists don't appear on daytime television because of an overly sensitive watchdog. While the Power Station may have modified their music output, the drive and determination is still present. They've still got some time left before joining the ranks on any of the 1980s reunion tours. --- INTERVIEW: Fish - Tym Altman and Ron Singer Fish, the former lead-singer of Marillion, left the band more than 10 years ago. His first North American tour as a solo artist recently took him through Vancouver, British Columbia, where Consumable was able to catch up with him. Consumable: How does it feel to be back in North America after being away for so long? Fish: It's very nice. We're having a lot of fun. I never came back for more than 10 years. We never had a record deal. We never had really the opportunity. I mean no promoter would seriously take us on, unless we had the radio umbrella - unless we had some record company working for us over here. It's a strange feeling coming back, and getting the reactions that we've been getting on the tour. Some of the gigs have been extremely moving. It's going to be interesting to see what happens tonight. C: There are a lot of great fans over here... a lot of hardcore fans have been waiting a long time for you to come back, so I think you'll be pleasantly surprised. F: I hope so. C: How does the experience in North America compare to Europe? F: Kind of similar. I'm not as intimidated by the US and Canada as I was. It doesn't seem as alien an environment as it was before. Having been in Chile, and Argentina, South Africa, and Singapore, this is like normal for us. C: But we see on videos how crowds really get into it, and I don't see the same kind of reaction from North American crowds. No one clapping along. F: No, no...they've been doing that! They've been doing that. It will be interesting tonight, when the crowd's kind of... sparse. But it's to be expected. The record company in Canada has not exactly been active. The album arrived only this week (Aug. 19), so it's a bad situation. But I'm not gonna be like "My god! There's only this many people, so we're gonna do a short show." We'll do a full show, and we'll do it to the best of our abilities. I mean every gig in North America is a showcase, you know? We'll already making plans to come back, including to Vancouver, no matter what happens tonight. I'd like to come back and build on whatever happens tonight. C: I read about what happened in Quebec, at the Hull gig. How did that situation come about? F: It was a gig sponsored by Budweiser. The production company, the guys who were in charge of it, were given money by Budweiser. There were no tickets. It was a free gig, so there was no real pressure on them to sell the gig. From my information, they didn't really sell it. The production as far as the way it was organized, it was dreadful. We were supposed to be the headline band. We soundchecked, and then they broke our gear down. They took all our mikes off and stuff. And at the end of the day, it went overtime, and they asked us to cut our set. And then we went on. They basically told us that everything was OK, and told us to go on. And then we went on, and the gear wasn't right. We ended up doing "Gentleman's Excuse Me" (from Fish's first solo album _Vigil In A Wilderness Of Mirrors_ ), and "Lavender" (from Marillion's classic _Misplaced Childhood_ ), you know, just to try and break it. But it was difficult. It was a French-speaking audience, and I don't speak Quebequois. It kind of left us in a bad light. We started the set, and about an hour and fifteen or twenty minutes in the set, they told us "That's it". And I was really annoyed. There was a lot of fans that waited a long time for me to come back, and they were just as disappointed as we were. I wanted to put on a full show, and we weren't allowed to do it. C: Do you regret doing it at all? F: No! Because everybody said "Oh, we're going to do 5000 people..blah blah blah"...and you know, you trust people. In the USA and Canada there is a certain mentality...you come out with figures that are a lot more elaborate than what they actually are. You just gotta deal with that. I think it would have been better if we would have done an indoor show in that area, in Hull or Ottawa than doing the open-air. But it's history. You know, you start blaming Budweiser... on stage I was pretty negative towards the whole corporate idea. But what it comes down to is a bunch of guys who were acting as... you know, they were making their money... they didn't really care about what the fans or the audience were going to get. They had their money, they've done the show, they didn't give a shit. We DID. And that was the problem. But I made my opinions very available on stage. But it wasn't an anti-Budweiser thing. I was just very, very annoyed. It was probably the most aggressive show that I've done... in years. C: How have sales of _Sunsets On Empire_ (Fish's new album) gone in the US? F: They're good in US. It's the Canada situation that annoys me - for example in Vancouver, it only arrived this week. The press promo has been very limited. There should have been a lot more of it. Then again, the gigs speak for themselves. We're getting great reviews, and here we're already looking at coming back and doing a big festival, in Quebec, Ontario, and possibly one in this city next summer. And I would like to get into Winnipeg, Calgary, and Edmonton. C: Do you think a live video or CD will come out from this North American tour? F: Maybe. I think we're going to record the LA show. We're just going to see how it goes. I'm not going to put anything out just because it's been done. It's got to be a relative quality. Let's just see what happens. C: It's hard. Like our Much Music (the Canadian equivalent of MTV, but cooler) doesn't play any Fish music. F: Yeah I know. I think it's up to the fans to start phoning them up and requesting the "Brother 52" video, and things like that. The good thing is, it's on the CD. It's an enhanced CD. C: You've always been really good interacting with the crowds. Have there been any hecklers at the shows? F: Yeah, the heckling in North America has been pathetic. What happens is that one guy shouts out, and I take him out, and everybody else goes like, "No. Well I better not say anything because..." Well I've been raised on Scottish audiences, and - I'm kind of sharp. C: What do they heckle you about? Do you ever get the Phish fans that come in by mistake and realize they're at the wrong show? F: We've had some, but as far as I'm aware they're into it. Nobody's come up and said "I want my money back, because I wanted the band with the other spelling. " You know, I respect the Phish guys. They're like myself - not exactly commercial in the sense of the word, not image oriented. They're very concerned with the live vibe, do a lot of gigs. That's the way they've collected their fans. They take care of their fans; they've got very loyal fans. And there's a lot of similarities in the way they work and the way I work. We've got a lot of contact through people. They know what I'm doing, and I know what they're doing. We've got this sort of mutual silence. There's been no lawyers saying "You can not do this, because it's the same sort of name, and shit like that." In Europe they go out and people think it's me playing small venues, and over here they think it's them playing small venues. And there's a lot of Phish t-shirts at our gigs, and I think there's a lot of similarities, so be it. I've got no problems. I'd love to do a double-headlining tour. To support them would be interesting. C: Have you had any other new singles released since "Brother 52" ? F: Yeah. "Change of Heart" has come out in the UK, but it's done nothing. Here the difference between Canada and USA, and UK, is that in the UK they're obsessed about image packaging, profile, and the wrapping paper. Not the tapes, not the content. And over here, you've got a vibrant rock radio, and that's the difference. In Scotland we get A-listed on all the stations. In England we get nothing. But I'm thriving off the positive vibes that are around this tour. I'm having more fun on this tour that I can ever remember having on any North American tour. It's just fun. And it's 10 years on, and I've got a different attitude now. I'm a professional musician, and I love the gigs, and the vibes. I love the 2 hour, 2 hour & 15 minute we play. I'm just a lot more mature than I was back then. The completion of this interview will appear in the next issue of Consumable. Fish's official website can be accessed at: http://www.livjm.ac.uk/fish --- REVIEW: Ralley, _Ralley_ (Logic/BMG Europe) - Tim Mohr Distinguishing themselves with *the* summer single for European pop people, Ralley have sprung from Cologne, Germany, into the limelight with the Cardigans-esque "Zelten" ("Camping"). A swirl of vintage organ, guitars, and "la la la"s, "Zelten" typifies the light, energetic sound of the self-titled debut. Suzie's vocals, particularly on the defiantly apathetic chorus, "scheiss egal, scheiss egal..." (a scatalogical way of saying "it doesn't matter" along the lines of "I don't give a shit"), are both perfectly suited to the music and inescapably alluring. The catchy melodies on _Ralley_ never let up, and the occasional theft of a classic ("30 KM" uses Bowie's "Heroes," and "Kuess mich" borrows heavily from the soul classic "Cool Jerk," which was also covered by the Go-Go's - which may explain how Ralley came up with it) can be ignored because of the fantastic original flair of "Zelten," "Halt mich" ("Hold me"), "Ich zeig Dir was" ("I'll show you something"), the groovy "Biest" ("Beast"), and others. The lyrics are clever, consciously girly, and staunchly opposed to anything of much consequence. The similarities to Sweden's Cardigans are obvious, though unlike other slavish imitators of the Cardigans (Finnland's Pansies, for instance), Ralley are just too good to be written off as mere pretenders. Ralley were also confident enough about such comparisons to record in Stockholm. Below the surface, and particularly live, Ralley are easily distinguished from the Cardigans: their approach is tinged throughout with a punky sensibility that can recall Elastica or Kenickie. And the Cardigans' fascination with jurassic hard rock is not reflected in Ralley's tastes: while the Cardigans have covered Black Sabbath, Thin Lizzy and Ozzy, Rally do "Substitute" from the Who's early Beat phase. Heavy dependence on Cardigans references is an injustice to Ralley, as they create terrific, light pop with their own style and personality. A list of other comparisons - Comet Gain, Helen Love, Rocketship - would unfortunately say very little to most people. The debut record from Ralley deserves attention of its own, and comparisons to the Cardigans are only a tribute to the fundamental quality of what Ralley do. Note: This album is rumoured to be released in an English version sometime in 1997 or early 1998. --- REVIEW: Soundtrack, _Kiss Me Guido_ (A&M) - Sean Eric McGill You can't walk down the aisles at your local music store without seeing at least twenty albums proclaiming to be "The Party Album of the Year". Regardless of your musical tastes (with the possible exception of metal), there's an album suited to your needs. You like the chessy Top-40 stuff? Theres one with "The Train" and "DJ Girl" (or God forbid, "Barbie Girl"). Dig that hip new electronica sound? Then there's an instant party CD just for you, featuring Chemical Brothers, Crystal Method, and the usual suspects. And in a lot of ways, the soundtrack to _Kiss Me Guido_ is a lot like that. As a party album, it's damn good. Whereas the soundtracks for films like Spawn and both The Crow films were dark in overall tone, _Kiss Me Guido_ is uplifting with every track. Of course, this has a lot to do with the overall tones of the films, as well, but that's another issue altogether. I've struggled long and hard to come up with a way of describing the overall sound of the album without causing any ruckus (a first for me), and have decided that the best way to describe - while it may cause some ruckus - is still the best way. The soundtrack for _Kiss Me Guido_ sounds like the soundtrack for the best night a club you could have - especially if it's a gay nightclub. How am I, a heterosexual, qualified to make this judgment? Well, when I first started DJing in the early nineties, one of the few places I could not only get a job but get an appreciative crowd was in the local gay clubs. The audiences responded more to my own personal style (a mix of Parliament and Prodigy, with emphasis on the former) than the other clubs, where kids just wanted to hear "Baby Got Back" or some variation of "Whatever! There it is!" all night. Tracks like The Gap Bands "Burn Rubber On Me" have been a staple of my DJ sets from day one, and fit in perfectly with some of the newer dance tracks like Love Tribe's "Stand Up" (featured here in the eight-minute "Narcotic Mix"). And thats pretty much the span of the album - old school meeting the new kids and having a party. Edwin Starr's two contributions, "Contact" and "H.A.P.P.Y. Radio" make for some of the best moments, but Miquel Brown's "So Many Men, So Little Time" also stands out. So, should you buy it? If this is your thing, yeah, you should. This is an album that wasn't put together with hit singles in mind - it was put together with a sense of fun, and it shows. --- REVIEW: Jennifer Goree, _Jennifer Goree_ (NightShade/Ghostmeat) - Jon Steltenpohl Take heart. Nestled somewhere, between the bleeding heart folk singers, "Freebird" covering Southern rockers, and "new" country, is a group of musicians who make smart, genuine music. The best of these bands make music that is gritty but beautiful, and emotional but unpretentious. Cowboy Junkies typified this style with their stunning _Trinity Sessions_, but other examples fall few and far between. Sheryl Crow and Bonnie Raitt made really slick versions that sold well to the VH-1 crowd, but those albums never escaped their commerical feel. "No Depression" bands get the honesty down, but they tend to lack essential production values. Often, the only refuge left to find honest music is on independent labels. That's where you'll find Jennifer Goree's self-titled release. It's a collection of loose, bluesy grooves alongside tender, touching ballads. Goree's style draws on a familiar tapestry of folk, blues, rock, and country roots. She's at ease doing a Sheryl Crow style piece like "Running on Home", a Lucinda Williams hard luck woman track like "Nothing You Can Do", or a traditional, acapella folk tune like "Shady Grove." Hammond organ, a mournful guitar, and a sweet, soulful voice g reet you when you put Jennifer Goree's CD in the player. "Love Will Abide" is contemplative and optimistic. Goree sings, "When I was a child I spoke like a child / But now I'm a woman and now I see / I see faith, hope, and I know that love will abide / So I'm saving all my love just for you." It's a simple tune, but Goree's voice is sure and seductive. Like the best of Cowboy Junkies, there's something soothing about being so laid back. Goree uses subtle textures to build her sound, and with the help of producer and guitarist Glenn Cannon, this album presents a near perfect balance of raw intimacy and studio production. Goree's album caught the ear of Ghostmeat Records when she sang back-up vocals on another Cannon produced album by Tony Tidwell and The Scalded Dogs. Tidwell has an affinity for roots rock done southern style, but, like Goree, he shines out amongst his major label peers with a matter-of-fact simplicity. While many folk acts are trying to change their sound to get a little airplay, there are fortunately a few artists out there who still just make great music. Jennifer Goree seems content with making music that feels and sounds just like music should. These songs are casual and easy going. The harmonies are sweet, the lyrics have meaning, and the music is alive. This album is right up there with the best of Cowboy Junkies catalog, and without a doubt, Jennifer Goree puts her major label peers to shame. You can contact Jennifer Goree at jenny@appalachiansoul.com and http://www.meerkat-computing.com/jenny. You can contact Ghostmeat Records at http://members.aol.com/ghostmeat/home.htm. --- CONCERT REVIEW: The Montgomery Cliffs, Fletcher's, Baltimore, MD - Bill Holmes In an age where so many things are jammed down your throat via mass-marketing and multi-million dollar advertising tie-ins, it's refreshing to have something sneak up and take you out at the knees just because it's great. Thank you, Montgomery Cliffs, for the sucker punch! The Cliffs are a three-piece from New York who play tight, catchy three minute songs with incredible energy and wit. Their track on the _Three Minute Revolution_ compilation was a standout, and their debut record _Andiamo!_ (115 Records) is more of the same; imagine a band with the pop sensibilities of The Smithereens but the power of The Attractions or The Jam. Recorded on the legendary shoestring budget in less than ideal conditions, _Andiamo!_ is a textbook example of why songs, not production tricks, are the essence of greatness. I drove to Baltimore faster than the bullet train with high expectations, usually not a great combination. Fletcher's is your typical big city rock club; small and hot yet somehow boasting a legion of "name" acts on a daily basis. Playing the role of the meat in a three-band sandwich is not fun (the first band's gear is set at soundcheck, and the closer gets the crowd at its most primed) but The Cliffs were there to get in and kick ass regardless. Lead singer/bassist Joey Salvia has a small ponytail wafting off the back of his otherwise shaved head; guitarist Wayne Thomas Kurz and drummer Dennis Carollo look docile by comparison. Dressed in suits and skinny ties, the crowd wonders whether they're about to see a major league act or a New Wave band that forgot to quit. Four bars into the set, it's obvious that the former is true. Few bands at ANY level seem to remember the art of putting on a show; years of self-indulgent noodling and lead singers contemplating their sneakers have seemingly washed away the standards of professionalism on stage. The Cliffs came out, plugged in and proceeded to rip through four great songs with but a half-beat between them. Taking a moment to play with the crowd's head, Salvia encouraged them to come closer ("we're from NY, we ain't gonna hurt you or anything") and then blasted back with another four-song barrage. Somehow Kurz's guitar sounds like rhythm and lead at the same time; drummer Carollo ponds away while counting off the beats to himself. Salvia is a typhoon on a leash, head and bass neck bobbing sharply, face contorting to punch home witty lyrics, mesmerizing the crowd. We're talking serious front man qualities here; whatever "it" is, Salvia has enough "it" to dole out leftovers. The crowd begins as newcomers and leave as converts, even laughing when Salvia has the stones to tease them with "BAL-TI-MORRRRE...you guys are the BEST crowd in the USA!! Nah...just pulling yer leg..." And the songs! Short, sharp rockers like "Whaddya No?" and "If I Were You" sound even better live (the band slips into a faux fifties' style on one verse in the latter - nice touch!), tight vocal harmonies riding over even tighter music. They played most of their debut record during the forty minute set, standouts besides those mentioned included the shuffle-rock "Broken Heart" and "She Found God", boasting the immortal couplet "ready to blow my wad/she turns around and says that she found god...". They also did two covers, buzzsaw versions of "Crazy" and "Somewhere Over The Rainbow". When your weakest moment is a Patsy Cline standard, you've got some great original songs. It's tough to get an encore on a multiple bill, lights and house music usually blast on before the drummer stands up. The Cliffs got two that night. If I were in a band and had to follow these guys onstage, I'd demand to have the room hosed out and a fresh audience brought in. Nuff said. --- REVIEW: Life of Agony, _Soul Searching Sun_ (Roadrunner) - Sean Eric McGill When I'm not reviewing music for Consumable, I'm quite often reviewing films for other publications. One of the basic issues that I address with every new film - especially those with established actors, directors, etc. - is that regardless of their previous work, you have to take this new element of their career as a potentially different chapter. For instance, John Travolta wouldn't be the star he is now if people constantly made mental reference to Look Whos Talking Now!. What does this have to do with bands, and more specifically, Life of Agony's new release _Soul Searching Sun_? A lot, actually. No matter how hard you try, it's hard to view a bands newest release without looking at it in context of what has gone before by the band. As different as it is to their other albums, everybody had a good idea going in what the new Green Day was going to sound like, and the same goes for most any artist. True, there are those like David Byrne who continue to push the boundaries of their particular image with each release, but they are the exception, not the rule. Want proof? Ask one hundred Metallica fans what they thought of _Load_ . Now what this has to do with Life of Agony is simple: I can't view them in terms of their past releases, simply because I don't have any of their past releases. _Soul Searching Sun_, their third release, contains the first songs by the Brooklyn-based band that Ive ever heard. But, through some intrepid Jimmy Olson-esque reporting (I read the bio and called the label), I was able to come across the following: 1. Life of Agony is comprised of some funny guys. 2. They are kinda-sorta kindred spirits with their labelmates Type O Negative (their cover of "Lets Pretend" is one of the CDs bonus tracks). 3. They used to be a lot harder than they are now. And there, Watson, lies the interesting part. If you are familiar with Life of Agony, then you know how hard they used to be. And even though I'm not familiar with their earlier work (sorta - a remixed version of "River Runs Red" appears on the album as a bonus, and it's pretty damn heavy) I can tell you that they aren't that heavy now. Not that this is a bad thing. _Soul Searching Sun_ is packed with some of the tightest songwriting and execution I've heard this year. Most of the songs linger in that limbo realm between "harder rock" and "alternative", but dont quite make it into "alterna-rock", or whatever nifty marketing phrase you want to use. Produced by Phil Nicolo (Rolling Stones/Dishwalla/The Police) and the band, _Soul Searching Sun_ is truly an exercise in experimentation, regardless of the bands past. The lyrics are brutally honest but not brutal, and the music is straightforward and direct while still allowing the band to show a variety of facets to their sound. One facet, their use of harmony, is pretty much a universal aspect of the album. It shows up in the choruses of not only the melodic "My Mind is Dangerous", but the much-heavier "Whispers" and every other song in between. Since _Soul Searching Sun_ came across my desk, I've read and heard (all through the aforementioned Olsen-esque reporting) that Life of Agony's true venue of choice is on stage. And while _Soul Searching Sun_ is a solid studio album, I would have liked to have gotten more of a feel for the bands life show from its sound. Of course, this could be partly due to the fact that I haven't seen them live, or maybe because they're not coming anywhere near me so that I could check them out. Either way, _Soul Searching Sun_ is a quality rock album in every respect. For those of you familiar with the band, it may or may not throw you for a curve, but it's still a pitch worth taking a swing at. --- SHORT TAKES - Bob Gajarsky Three albums which aren't your usual fare... REVIEW: Hanuman Care Kit, _Visiting_ (Gorgone) Sometimes the best things come in unknown packages... Named for the Hindu monkey god (Hanuman), the French/English duo of Hanuman Care Kit incorporate nearly every dance sound imaginable to produce one of 'those' records that breaks down barriers and defies conventional descriptions. Like two chemists striving for perfection, the Frenchmen / musician (Flazz) and Englishman / vocalist (Stig) mix trip hop, techno, jungle, drum 'n' bass, rap, scratching and pop in a giant beaker to produce the perfect antidote to combat boredom from bland music - even if their names aren't exactly brilliant. A quick perusal through their debut album, _Visiting_, offers a glimpse into their exciting new world. "Aural Exciter" pushes the limits of a new 'catch phrase' - jungle jazz???? - while keeping the beats pounding. "Jezabella" wouldn't seem out of place on Space's _Spiders_ disc with its unique ambient-meets-trip hop feel, and "Ironality" is just tripping space-age rap. "Sombeleev" was remixed by Massive Attack's DJ Gaffo Armagedion, and if there was one overriding comparison for _Visiting_, it would be straight to Massive Attack. Forget the stagnant American dance scene. With the uprising of artists who parlez vous francais, it has become painfully obvious that the real cutting edge scene is emanating out of France - and the musical diversity on _Visiting_ positions Hanuman Care Kit right at the forefront of it all. Gorgone Productions can be contacted at PO Box 2242, Austin, TX 78768. REVIEW: Jaymz Bee And Royal Jelly Orchestra, _Cocktail Shaken And Stirred_ (Milan) While the lounge scene hasn't quite captured the fancy of North Americans as it has in the U.K., Canadian Jaymz Bee is hoping to change all that with the release of his cocktail covers compilation, _Cocktail Shaken And Stirred_. Bee has devoted this eleven track album to deconstructing and reworking hits - with different vocalists on each song - from some of Canadian's best known rockers. "The Safety Dance" is transformed into a scene straight out of the Tijuana Brass meeting Ravi Shankar on the Dating Game, while crooning occurs on the Wayne Newton-esque twist on Loverboy's "Turn Me Loose" as well as an ultra-hip version of Bryan Adams' "Run To You". The standout track is the James Bond meets Partridge Family feel to Corey Hart's "Sunglasses At Night", but alterna-fans will feel more comfortable with the cleaning detergent feel of Alanis' "You Oughta Know" - and, yes, they do say 'fuck'. A collection such as this, no matter how kitschy, still requires competent musicians to complete the mood, and the twelve piece Royal Jelly Orchestra is up to the task. Using the traditional (trumpet, sax, piano) and unconventional (sitar, vibraharp, flugelhorn), they provide the perfect atmosphere for Bee's vocalists...and an easy chair...and a nice, dry, martini. Shaken, not stirred. REVIEW: Abe Lincoln Story, _We're Having A Dance Party_ (Flipside) Flipside Records first gained a (belated) sense of national notoriety when they released a single, "MTV Makes Me Want To Smoke Crack", by a then-unknown Beck. The other side of the double A-side was recorded by a band friendly with Beck, Bean, fronted by Steve Moramarco. Now, several years later, Moramarco returns to the California scene leading the dignified Abe Lincoln Story. This time around, Moramarco leads a group of three regular members (Gary Viggers on bass, Jonathon Stearns on trumpet and keyboards, and Peter Fullerton on drum kit/percussion) and cast of many part-time members to generate a novelty ska-punk group that can play a tune. Some of the outside contributors include the Geraldine Fibbers' Carla Bozulitch (who sings on "Come Home") and Glue drummer Peter Tomlinson. "I Don't Understand (Star 69)" owes much to Eddie Cochran, but with a powerful horn section and 'Mr. Popeil'-style backup singers. Imagine Weird Al's original tunes combined with The Foremen's subtle sense of satire. "Rock, Scissors, Paper" takes the age-old children's game, and makes it into something everyone can dance to. "Get High And Go To Work" is the raise-your-hands-and-pump-your-fists rock and roll that carried music in the 80s, but with a different tale of partying and getting even with the boss. It won't make a fiesta by itself, but _Dance Party_ offers an opportunity to get drunk and let the Abe Lincoln Story tell the tale. --- REVIEW: The Rudess Morgenstein Project, _The Rudess Morgenstein Project_ (Domo) - Linda Scott The self titled debut album from the Rudess Morgenstein Project throws up a barrier as if to say, 'If you don't know what this is all about, find something else to listen to." But if you could just open it in the store - or find a listening booth - you just might take it home. What is Rudess Morgenstein? For the millions of us not in the know, Jordan Rudess and Rod Morgenstein are part of that unique rock band, Dixie Dregs. Rudess is the keyboardist and Morgenstein is drummer for this instrumental jazz/fusion/rock band. The Dregs' most famous member is stellar guitarist Steve Morse although Morgenstein is well known as the glam/hair band Winger's skinman. Dregs fans are legendary; they love the set switches from to rock to country to jazz to bluegrass, jigs and classical in a format bandleader Morse calls "electronic chamber music". Their rendition of "Kashmir" could make Page/Plant look over their shoulders. In short, a wonderful instrumental band that can do it live or on an album. And if you're a Dixie Dregs fan or a fan of instrumental music, you'll want to hear the Rudess Morgenstein's take on this genre. If the keyboardist/drummer seems strange or sparse, the two had a chance to try it live first. In 1994 with the Dregs on tour, a power failure took out everything but the keyboards. Morgenstein flailed away at the drums joined by Rudess for an impromptu 10 minute drum/keyboard jam which inspired this project. The ten tracks here bring you about 50 minutes of music. You'll hear rock combined with elements of classical, jazz, and pop along with the latest music technology. The album seems to have less rock than a Dregs album and with no covers of "My Sharona", you can take this one to the office without fear of offending or distracting. This is one of the weaknesses for Dregs fans: because the Project doesn't rock hard enough and performs a more 'thinking man's' music than the Dregs, casual listeners may not get this record. That will be their loss. Both Rudess and Morgenstein are excellent musicians. Rudess began at Juilliard at the age of nine being groomed for a concert pianist career. But at age 18, he walked out of Juilliard to immerse himself in the rock and synthesizer world. In 1994 he was voted Best New Talent by Keyboard Magazine readers. Morgenstein's drumming style led to his winning Best Progressive Rock Drummer from Modern Drummer Magazine for 5 years in a row. Morgenstein also helped found Dixie Dregs and the Steve Morse Band. His drums pushed the sales of Winger albums toward the 4 million mark, and he plays drums on Kip Winger's new pop album. The Project brings together these two megatalents who wanted to try something new. This type of music with few musicians, lots of technical musical gadgets may not appeal to all. That synth, perfect sound may just not make it for you. On the other hand, Rudell and Morgenstein are part of Dixie Dregs, and the Dregs ARE worth listening to. See what this subset of the Dregs can do. And now that you've figured out who and what the Rudess Morgenstein Project is, you could spare them a listen. --- REVIEW: Jenifer Smith, _Code Mesa_ (Point Music) - Jon Steltenpohl Listening to the first track of Jenifer Smith's new album, _Code Mesa_, gets me excited. "Mesa Drive" is reminiscent of the Eurythmics and Enya. It starts with a cappella voices and forms an ethereal atmosphere with synthesized chimes. Smith layers her voice across many octaves to create a shimmering sound that simply mesmerizes. On track two, "Looking for Sleep", the good feelings continue. It's the same minimal style backed with a funky little jive guitar that eventually moves into a engaging beat of two or three layers of voice on top of many more layers of instruments. But, Smith falters on the third track, "Radio Bagdad". It starts out well enough with a monkish, echoed exercise in tonal harmonies, but by the end of the song, nothing has changed. The dynamic is the same, the melody doesn't move, and the lyrics become annoyingly repetitive. The power of repetition to gain a mantra effect is nothing new, but 5 and a half minutes of the same thing with no dynamic changes just doesn't cut it. Other tracks follow the same pattern, and the album withers in a myriad of needless repetition. Smith provides us with only two more songs, "Return from Calvery" and "Bodycount", that live up to the promise of the first two tracks. It's a shame, because the harmonies Smith has mastered are impressive. _Code Mesa_ shows great promise for Smith, and the four superior tracks would make an incredible debut EP. Unfortunately, four out of ten songs doesn't make for an incredible album, and _Code Mesa_ serves only as an announcement to keep an eye on this emerging artist. --- NEWS: > The Squirrel Nut Zippers will be performing at a free concert in their hometown of Carrboro, North Carolina on September 19 at the Carrboro Town Commons. The alcohol-free show will run from 5:30 pm until 9:30 pm. --- TOUR DATES (Please confirm with site before travelling): Bailter Space / Sunday Puncher Sep. 17 San Diego, CA Casbah Sep. 18 Los Angeles, CA Spaceland Sep. 22 Portland, OR Satryricon David Bowie Sep. 15 San Francisco, CA Warfield Sep. 21 Detroit, MI State Theater Sep. 24 Montreal, QC Metropolis Daft Punk / Aphex Twin Sep. 17 Denver, CO Ogden Theatre Sep. 19 Las Vegas, NV Hard Rock Sep. 20 Los Angeles, CA Snow Summit Sep. 23 Seattle, WA DV8 Danielson/Soul Junk Sep. 18 Charlottesville, VA Tokyo Rose Sep. 19 Chapel Hill Lizard and Snake Chris Duarte Sep. 16 Lawrence, KS The Bottleneck Sep. 17 Cedar Rapids, IA Big Dogs Sep. 18 Kansas City, MO Grand Emporium Sep. 19 Wichita, KS Cotillion Ballroom Sep. 20 Omaha, NE Ranch Bowl Sep. 21 Lincoln, NE Zoo Bar Sep. 23 Salt Lake City, UT Zephyr Club w/ Ronnie Dawson Sep. 25 Solana Beach, CA Belly Up Tavern Emerson, Lake & Palmer Sep. 17 Cleveland, OH Nautica Sep. 18 Auburn Hills, MI The Palace Sep. 19 Chicago, IL Rosemont Theatre Sep. 20 Milwaukee, WI Eagle Ballroom Sep. 23 Phoenix, AZ Union Hall Sep. 25 Los Angeles, CA Universal Amp.e Foo Fighters Sep. 18 Las Vegas, NV Huntridge Theatre Sep. 19 Irvine, CA Irvine Meadows Amphitheatre (w/ Rage Against The Machine) Sep. 21 Phoenix, AZ Blockbuster Desert Sky (w/ Rage Against The Machine) Sep. 23 Austin, TX Austin Music Hall Sep. 24 Dallas, TX Bronco Bowl Greg Garing Sep. 15 New York, NY Arlene's Grocery Buddy Guy Sep. 20 Monterey, CA Pattee Arena (hed) p.e. Sep. 18 Fremont, CA Club Chaos Sep. 19 San Francisco, CA Cocodrie Sep. 20 Sacramento CA Cattle Club Sep. 21 Reno, NV Little Waldorf Sep. 23 San Diego, CA Canes Bar & Grill Sep. 24 Signal Hill, CA Foothill Club Irving Plaza (NYC concert hall: http://www.irvingplaza.com) Sep. 19 Reel Big Fish / Save Ferris Sep. 20 Helmet / Melvins Life of Agony Sep. 15 Pittsburgh, PA Club Laga Sep. 16 Huntington, WV Drop Shop Sep. 17 Washington, DC 930 Club Sep. 19 Ft. Lauderdale, FL House of Rock Sep. 20 Tampa, FL State Theatre Sep. 22 Raleigh, NC Mission Pantera / Coal Chamber / Machine Head Sep. 16 Cleveland, OH Nautica Sep. 18 Kalamazoo, MI Wings Stadium Sep. 19 Auburn Hills, MI Palace Sep. 20 Toledo, OH Sports Arena Sep. 21 Cincinnati, OH River Bend Sep. 23 Chicago, IL Aragon Sep. 24 St. Paul, MN Wilkins Auditorium Samples Sep. 16 Denver, CO Bluebird Theatre Sep. 17 Manhattan, KS Wareham Hall Sep. 18 St. Louis, MO Mississippi Nights Sep. 19 Springfield, MO Juke Joint Sep. 20 Cincinnati, OH Bogarts Sep. 23-24 Washington, DC Bayou Sep. 25 Baltimore, MD Bohagers Shootyz Groove / Tree Sep. 16 New London, CT El N Gee Sep. 17 Poughkeepsie, NY Chance Sep. 18 Hoboken, NJ Maxwell's Sep. 19 Portchester, NY 7 Willow St. Sep. 20 Providence, RI Lupo's Sep. 21 Cleveland Heights, OH Grog Shop Sep. 22 Pittsburgh, PA Rainforest Sep. 23 Detroit, MI Shelter Sep. 24 Huntington, WV Drop Shop Sep. 25 Canton, OH B.B. McClain's Tsunami Sep. 15 Orlando, FL Sapphire Supper Club w/Sonora Pine Sep. 16 Miami, FL Space Cadette Records w/Sonora Pine Sep. 17 Tampa, FL Harbour Club w/Sonora Pine Sep. 18 Talahassee, FL Cow Haus w/Sonora Pine Sep. 19 Athens, GA 40 Watt/Atomic Sep. 20 Charlotte, NC Tremont Music Hall Sep. 21 Chapel Hill, NC Lizard & Snake --- Founded in August, 1993, Consumable Online is the oldest continuous collaborative music publication on the Internet. To get back issues of Consumable, check out: WWW: http://www.westnet.com/consumable FTP: ftp.quuxuum.org in the directory /pub/consumable ftp.prouser.org (URL) http://www.westnet.com/consumable/Consumable.html (Delphi) Music Fandom forum; GO ENT MUSIC To subscribe to Consumable, send an e-mail message to consumable-request@westnet.com with the body of the message stating "subscribe consumable". To unsubscribe, send a message to the same address stating "unsubscribe consumable". 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